The last time the Honolulu Marathon was a live event was in 2019, just before the world went into lockdown for COVID-19. This was the race that convinced me there was something wrong with my heart and got me to get a referral to see a cardiologist.
"In order to do something you've never done before, you need to become someone you've never been." -- Chris Hauth
My long term goal as a triathlete -- what I call my why -- is to live an active lifestyle and demonstrate that age is just a number. When I say demonstrate I do not imply an audience of fellow athletes. I include everyone I come in contact with.
My Why
In my last post I mentioned a book I have been reading by Addie Bracy, Mental Training for Ultrarunning. Chapter two, Find Your Why for Running, goes into great depth about what she means by “why” and includes a number of practical exercises to help the reader bring their thoughts into focus. I have yet to do the exercises, but I plan to. Meanwhile, I have already drafted my why:
Age is just a number.
My first attempt was a bit wordy:
I do triathlon to teach others that age is just a number.
Before I get into the subject of today’s post, I just want to share with you my concern. It’s a small thing. For years I have shared my thoughts in a blog on Blogspot, the original free blogging service now owned by Google. I have no issue with them. It is a terrific service. The thing is, I also have my website, hosted on GoDaddy. I use Drupal there, and the default layout has a front page announcement tool that functions well for a blog. I would like to encourage readers to explore my website, so I am going to try posting there and see how it goes.
In my latest blog post I take a different view of the future than I expressed previously. What changed? Covid-19 numbers. I think 2022 will see a return to normal racing, especially as the year unfolds. I am aiming for IM Cozumel in November. What are you aiming for? Whatever your goals, I can help you get there. Let's show the world we are never too old.
Coaching is about a lot more than writing training plans. A good coach has to know how to talk effectively with athletes. Especially hard during a training session, when emotions tend to get in the way. Read my blog post for more.
In this blog post I describe my recent and on-going injury. More of a set-back, but still frustrating.
2021 holds out little promise for traditional races. Here is some advice on how to pivot and set different goals.
A recent news item from Triathlete.com says some folks want to do for Ironman what Nike did for marathon with their Breaking2 project. I thought running behind cars made the run irrelevant. The Sub-7 project wants to include the same kind of tricky, to include drafting on the bike behind pacers. Well, Nike has sold a lot of shoes.
In this blog post I describe my run warmup drills. Keep in mind that older athletes need more time to get the motor warmed up. I find that fifteen minutes works well for me. Your mileage my vary.